Gizaw

September 24.2007

The Six Pillars of Character Trustworthiness. Respect Responsibility. Fairness. Caring. Citizenship. The Six Pillars of Character are ethical values to guide our choices. The standards of conduct that arise out of those values constitute the ground rules of ethics, and therefore of ethical decision-making.There is nothing sacrosanct about the number six. We might reasonably have eight or 10, or more. But most universal virtues fold easily into these six. The number is not unwieldy and the Six Pillars of Character can provide a common lexicon. Why is a common lexicon necessary? So that people can see what unites our diverse and fractured society. So we can communicate more easily about core values. So we can understand ethical decisions better, our own and those of others. The Six Pillars act as a multi-level filter through which to process decisions. So, being trustworthy is not enough � we must also be caring. Adhering to the letter of the law is not enough � we must accept responsibility for our action or inaction. The Pillars can help us detect situations where we focus so hard on upholding one moral principle that we sacrifice another � where, intent on holding others accountable, we ignore the duty to be compassionate; where, intent on getting a job done, we ignore how.In short, the Six Pillars can dramatically improve the ethical quality of our decisions, and thus our character and lives. 1. TRUSTWORTHINESS When others trust us, they give us greater leeway because they feel we don't need monitoring to assure that we'll meet our obligations. They believe in us and hold us in higher esteem. That's satisfying. At the same time, we must constantly live up to the expectations of others and refrain from even small lies or self-serving behavior that can quickly destroy our relationships. Simply refraining from deception is not enough. Trustworthiness is the most complicated of the six core ethical values and concerns a variety of qualities like honesty, integrity, reliability and loyalty. Honesty There is no more fundamental ethical value than honesty. We associate honesty with people of honor, and we admire and rely on those who are honest. But honesty is a broader concept than many may realize. It involves both communications and conduct. Honesty in communications is expressing the truth as best we know it and not conveying it in away likely to mislead or deceive. There are three dimensions: Truthfulness. Truthfulness is presenting the facts to the best of our knowledge. Intent is the crucial distinction between truthfulness and truth itself. Being wrong is not the same thing as lying, although honest mistakes can still damage trust insofar as they may show sloppy judgment. Sincerity. Sincerity is genuineness, being without trickery or duplicity. It precludes all acts, including half-truths, out-of-context statements, and even silence, that are intended to create beliefs or leave impressions that are untrue or misleading. Candor. In relationships involving legitimate expectations of trust, honesty may also require candor, forthrightness and frankness, imposing the obligation to volunteer information that another person needs to know. Honesty in conduct is playing by the rules, without stealing, cheating, fraud, subterfuge and other trickery. Cheating is a particularly foul form of dishonesty because one not only seeks to deceive but to take advantage of those who are not cheating. It's a two-fer: a violation of both trust and fairness. Not all lies are unethical, even though all lies are dishonest. Huh? That's right, honesty is not and inviolate principle. Occasionally, dishonesty is ethically justifiable, as when the police lie in undercover operations or when one lies to criminals or terrorists to save lives. But don't kid yourself: occasions for ethically sanctioned lying are rare and require serving a very high purpose indeed, such as saving a life- not hitting a management-pleasing sales target or winning a game or avoiding a confrontation. Integrity The word integrity comes from the same Latin root as "integer," or whole number. Like a whole number, a person of integrity is undivided and complete. This means that the ethical person acts according to her beliefs, not according to expediency. She is also consistent. There is no difference in the way she makes decisions from situation to situation, her principles don't vary at work or at home, in public or alone. Because she must know who she is and what she values, the person of integrity takes time for self-reflection, so that the events, crises and seeming necessities of the day do not determine the course of her moral life. She stays in control. She may be courteous, even charming, but she is never duplicitous. She never demeans herself with obsequious behavior toward those she thinks might do her some good. She is trusted because you know who she is: what you see is what you get. People without integrity are called "hypocrites" or "two-faced." Reliability (Promise-Keeping) When we make promises or other commitments that create a legitimate basis for another person to rely upon us, we undertake special moral duties. We accept the responsibility of making all reasonable efforts to fulfill our commitments. Because promise-keeping is such an important aspect of trustworthiness, it is important to: Avoid bad-faith excuses. Interpret your promises fairly and honestly. Don't try to rationalize noncompliance. Avoid unwise commitments. Before making a promise consider carefully whether you are willing and likely to keep it. Think about unknown or future events that could make it difficult, undesirable or impossible. Sometimes, all we can promise is to do our best. Avoid unclear commitments. Be sure that, when you make a promise, the other person understands what you are committing to do. Loyalty Some relationships � husband-wife, employer-employee, citizen-country - create an expectation of allegiance, fidelity and devotion. Loyalty is a responsibility to promote the interests of certain people, organizations or affiliations. This duty goes beyond the normal obligation we all share to care for others. Limitations to loyalty. Loyalty is a tricky thing. Friends, employers, co-workers and others may demand that we rank their interests above ethical considerations. But no one has the right to ask another to sacrifice ethical principles in the name of a special relationship. Indeed, one forfeits a claim of loyalty when he or she asks so high a price for maintaining the relationship. Prioritizing loyalties. So many individuals and groups make loyalty claims on us that we must rank our loyalty obligations in some rational fashion. For example, it's perfectly reasonable, and ethical, to look out for the interests of our children, parents and spouses even if we have to subordinate our obligations to other children, neighbors or co-workers in doing so. Safeguarding confidential information. Loyalty requires us to keep some information confidential. When keeping a secret breaks the law or threatens others, however, we may have a responsibility to "blow the whistle." Avoiding conflicting interests. Employees and public servants have a duty to make all professional decisions on merit, unimpeded by conflicting personal interests. They owe ultimate loyalty to them public. 2. RESPECT People are not things, and everyone has a right to be treated with dignity. We certainly have no ethical duty to hold all people in high esteem, but we should treat everyone with respect, regardless of who they are and what they have done. We have a responsibility to be the best we can be in all situations, even when dealing with unpleasant people. The Golden Rule � do unto others as you would have them do unto you � nicely illustrates the Pillar of respect. Respect prohibits violence, humiliation, manipulation and exploitation. It reflects notions such as civility, courtesy, decency, dignity, autonomy, tolerance and acceptance. Civility, Courtesy and Decency A respectful person is an attentive listener, although his patience with the boorish need not be endless (respect works both ways). Nevertheless, the respectful person treats others with consideration, and doesn't resort to intimidation, coercion or violence except in extraordinary and limited situations to defend others, teach discipline, maintain order or achieve social justice. Punishment is used in moderation and only to advance important social goals and purposes. Dignity and Autonomy People need to make informed decisions about their own lives. Don't withhold the information they need to do so. Allow all individuals, including maturing children, to have a say in the decisions that affect them. Tolerance and Acceptance Accept individual differences and beliefs without prejudice. Judge others only on their character, abilities and conduct. 3. RESPONSIBILITY Life is full of choices. Being responsible means being in charge of our choices and, thus, our lives. It means being accountable for what we do and who we are. It also means recognizing that our actions matter and we are morally on the hook for the consequences. Our capacity to reason and our freedom to choose make us morally autonomous and, therefore, answerable for whether we honor or degrade the ethical principles that give life meaning and purpose. Ethical people show responsibility by being accountable, pursuing excellence and exercising self-restraint. They exhibit the ability to respond to expectations. Accountability An accountable person is not a victim and doesn't shift blame or claim credit for the work of others. He considers the likely consequences of his behavior and associations. He recognizes the common complicity in the triumph of evil when nothing is done to stop it. He leads by example. Pursuit of Excellence The pursuit of excellence has an ethical dimension when others rely upon our knowledge, ability or willingness to perform tasks safely and effectively. Diligence. It is hardly unethical to make mistakes or to be less than "excellent," but there is a moral obligation to do one's best, to be diligent, reliable, careful, prepared and informed. Perseverance. Responsible people finish what they start, overcoming rather than surrendering to obstacles. They avoid excuses such as, "That's just the way I am," or "It's not my job," or "It was legal." Continuous Improvement. Responsible people always look for ways to do their work better. Self-Restraint Responsible people exercise self-control, restraining passions and appetites (such as lust, hatred, gluttony, greed and fear) for the sake of longer-term vision and better judgment. They delay gratification if necessary and never feel it's necessary to "win at any cost." They realize they are as they choose to be, every day. 4. FAIRNESS What is fairness? Most would agree it involves issues of equality, impartiality, proportionality, openness and due process. Most would agree that it is unfair to handle similar matters inconsistently. Most would agree that it is unfair to impose punishment that is not commensurate with the offense. The basic concept seems simple, even intuitive, yet applying it in daily life can be surprisingly difficult. Fairness is another tricky concept, probably more subject to legitimate debate and interpretation than any other ethical value. Disagreeing parties tend to maintain that there is only one fair position (their own, naturally). But essentially fairness implies adherence to a balanced standard of justice without relevance to one's own feelings or inclinations. Process Process is crucial in settling disputes, both to reach the fairest results and to minimize complaints. A fair person scrupulously employs open and impartial processes for gathering and evaluating information necessary to make decisions. Fair people do not wait for the truth to come to them; they seek out relevant information and conflicting perspectives before making important judgments. Impartiality Decisions should be made without favoritism or prejudice. Equity An individual, company or society should correct mistakes, promptly and voluntarily. It is improper to take advantage of the weakness or ignorance of others. 5. CARING If you existed alone in the universe, there would be no need for ethics and your heart could be a cold, hard stone. Caring is the heart of ethics, and ethical decision-making. It is scarcely possible to be truly ethical and yet unconcerned with the welfare of others. That is because ethics is ultimately about good relations with other people. It is easier to love "humanity" than to love people. People who consider themselves ethical and yet lack a caring attitude toward individuals tend to treat others as instruments of their will. They rarely feel an obligation to be honest, loyal, fair or respectful except insofar as it is prudent for them to do so, a disposition which itself hints at duplicity and a lack of integrity. A person who really cares feels an emotional response to both the pain and pleasure of others. Of course, sometimes we must hurt those we truly care for, and some decisions, while quite ethical, do cause pain. But one should consciously cause no more harm than is reasonably necessary to perform one's duties. The highest form of caring is the honest expression of benevolence, or altruism. This is not to be confused with strategic charity. Gifts to charities to advance personal interests are a fraud. That is, they aren't gifts at all. They're investments or tax write-offs. 6. CITIZENSHIP Citizenship includes civic virtues and duties that prescribe how we ought to behave as part of a community. The good citizen knows the laws and obeys them, yes, but that's not all. She volunteers and stays informed on the issues of the day, the better to execute her duties and privileges as a member of a self-governing democratic society. She does more than her "fair" share to make society work, now and for future generations. Such a commitment to the public sphere can have many expressions, such as conserving resources, recycling, using public transportation and cleaning up litter. The good citizen gives more than she takes. Love Ethiopia

UN seeks Ethiopia abuses inquiry

The UN has called for an independent investigation into reports of human rights abuses in Ethiopia's predominantly Somali Ogaden region.

A visiting UN group says they found a pervasive fear among residents caught in clashes between the army and rebels.

The Ethiopian army has been accused by ONLF separatists of operating a food blockade and causing a man-made famine.

Responding to the report, Ethiopia said it would work with the UN to ensure the region's food requirements were met.

However, it did not comment on allegations of abuses.

Click here to see a map of the area

The report by the mission, who visited the area last month, also calls on the government to give aid agencies access to the region.

It says the food situation is deteriorating rapidly and could reach emergency levels very shortly and that there is an acute shortage of drugs and other medical supplies in the area.

The BBC's Elizabeth Blunt in Addis Ababa says that the fact that the mission decided not to make the report public but to share the findings privately with the government suggests that publication would have caused considerable embarrassment and prejudice the chance of getting matters improved

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL ETHIOPIANS AROUND THE WORLD

Friday, September 07, 2007

Former Addis Ababa University Professor, Gizachew Shiferaw, Kinijit's Head of Organizational Affairs, is part of the party's delegation that will tour North America. EZ Post has a revealing inteview with him.

EZ: Your upcoming tour has its critics. Why are you traveling abroad before all Kinijit prisoners are released?

Gizachew: The tour is part of the wider political activity we are undertaking now. We have to thank for the great effort and commitment Ethiopians living abroad showed both to the struggle for democracy and our release from prison. What Ethiopians abroad did when we were in prison was incredible. In 2006 and the beginning of 2007, there were massive demonstrations all over the world. They-children, the elderly, people with tremendous work and professional responsibilities- withstood the harsh weathers and made their points. They put pressures on host countries; made the media to pay attention. I haven't seen or heard the Diaspora of other countries showing such commitment.

The Ethiopian diaspora is a force to be reckoned with. This is not only because of what it has done in the past two years but also because its potential is immense. We have a lot of educated people, people with money, people with connections, people with vigor, enthusiasm and incredible love of the country living abroad. Any political force in Ethiopia should be able to mobilize our Diaspora for the benefit of the country. Kinijit will certainly do that.

But our tour doesn't exclude doing things at home. We have already established two committees which are entrusted with the task of getting the prisoners out. One is a data committee which gathers information about the prisoners all over Ethiopia. The other is a contact group which liaisons with the Shimagles. Part of our agreement when we were released was the release of all people who were imprisoned in connection to the election. The Shimagles are facilitating that and we are meeting them every two weeks. I think in our trip abroad we will also highlight their ordeals if they aren't released by then.

EZ: But why wouldn't you just wait here until they are released?

Gizachew: We can do a lot of things at a time. Our trip is short. The South African group stays for ten days. They will come and continue what we have started. We also have a lot of council members who won't go abroad. They will also do the task. I don't see any reason why we can't do two things at the same time. We are a political organization. Our tasks are vast. We should be able to do a lot of things at the same time.

EZ: There are divisions in the Diaspora. Part of the reason for your trip is to solve that. How are you going to do it?

Gizachew: Our direction and vision regarding that is very clear. There will be no more appointments from Addis Ababa. It is a cliché; but I have to say it: Power belongs to the people. Ethiopians abroad will choose their own representatives for the chapters and kinijit support groups – at city, state, national and continental basis. It is each constituency which determines what its leaders will be.

EZ: That is for the future. But what about the past? There are serious allegations; allegations of embezzlement of incredible amounts of money collected in the name of Kinijit? Allegations of authoritarianism? Can you talk about the future without addressing the past?

Gizachew: We have started to address that. What we first did when we got out of prison was to take away the political powers of groups who were acting in the Diaspora on our behalf

NTERVIEW-Ethiopian opposition leader takes fight abroad

By Timothy Gardner NEW YORK, Sept 5 (Reuters) - The man who was elected mayor of Addis Ababa said he is not sure whether he can hold public demonstrations there, so he is visiting the United States and Europe seeking support for a new era of democracy in Ethiopia. "It is very difficult to know what it means to be engaged in political struggles in Ethiopia," Berhanu Nega, deputy chairman of Ethiopian opposition party Coalition for Unity and Democracy, or CUD, told Reuters in an interview in New York. "Can you organize demonstrations, can you organize discussions? All this is not answered." Nega won the mayoral race of the capital city in 2005, but was jailed in November of that year after a government crackdown on a protest about the general elections where at least 193 civilians and six police officers died. The elections, the freest yet in Ethiopia, had raised hopes of democracy after decades of feudalism and dictatorship. Now Sub-Saharan Africa's second most populous country after Nigeria awaits to see whether the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the CUD will reconcile, or if there will be more authoritarian rule. After Nega's release nearly two years later in July, Zenawi said Nega and other CUD members who had won seats in parliament and Addis Ababa's city council would be free to run for office in the future. But Nega said it's too early to tell whether he will run in any future election. "Most of the institutions that are necessary for democratic order don't seem to be operating right now," he said, adding that Ethiopia's judiciary, security forces, and election boards were all under control of Zenawi. SERIOUS PROBLEMS He said the government has so far reneged on the release agreement, facilitated by traditional elders, that CUD leaders would meet with the government and third party negotiators on how to broaden democratic institutions. "Clearly what's at stake, so long as the bitter disagreement continues, is that it keeps the country from addressing its really serious problems such as overpopulation, looming famine, soil erosion and flooding," said Donald Levine, an expert on Ethiopia at the University of Chicago. Until CUD knows whether it can hold public forums, it is meeting internally and working with the international community to raise support, said Nega, who this week will address academics at The New School for Social Research in New York, where he studied for an economics degree. In addition, Nega will lead a delegation of fellow opposition members, who were also jailed after the protest, to visit New York, Washington, and Atlanta. For about a month they will visit Ethiopians who have relocated to the United States. He hopes the delegation will also meet with members of U.S. Congress and officials at the State Department to urge them to look closely at the Zenawi administration. The longer it takes for the government and the CUD to come together, the greater chance violence could spread through the country from places such as the remote Ogaden region where the government is leading a crackdown on rebels, he said. "If we don't fill the political space in this discussion with the commitment to settle this impasse peacefully, then these other forces are going to be the ones (the) government has to deal with," he said.

MSF Press Release: Urgent Appeal to Government of Ethiopia Despite repeated appeals over the past weeks to gain permission to return, the Government

Violence and displacement are threatening the lives of the civilian population in Ethiopia’s conflict-affected Somali region, says the medical humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Despite urgent humanitarian needs, however, two sections of MSF have been denied access to the region. MSF is calling on the Ethiopian authorities to immediately allow its teams to provide assistance to people in the region who are facing an increasingly desperate situation. MSF has a signed agreement with the Government of Ethiopia to work in the Somali region –often referred to as the "Ogaden region" – and had conducted several assessments of the humanitarian needs in the area when it was forced to evacuate its teams for security reasons in late July. Despite repeated appeals over the past weeks to gain permission to return, the Government of Ethiopia has denied MSF access.

"There is a humanitarian crisis in the Somali-region of Ethiopia," said William Robertson, Head of Mission for the Dutch section of MSF in Ethiopia. “Our teams have treated people who have been forced to flee their homes and are now struggling to survive with little or no assistance. People are living in fear because they find themselves targeted by and caught between armed groups. We are urgently calling for immediate access to the region in order to help civilians in need."

While conducting mobile health clinics and measles vaccination campaigns in the Wardher area of the region until fighting forced the MSF team to leave on July 24, MSF international staff saw emptied and burned villages and assisted numerous people who reported being forcibly displaced from their homes. Despite limited operations, MSF treated several victims of beatings and gunshot wounds, underlining the need for urgent medical care in the area.

In July, MSF also conducted assessments of the humanitarian needs in the region in the areas of Denan, Garbo, Degahmadow, Sagag, and Fiq. During these assessments, the MSF team saw a number of villages wholly or partially abandoned and were told of food shortages by villagers and displaced people.

"Last week, we asked the authorities to grant us access at least for 24 to 48 hours so we could provide medications and material to Fiq health centre. We know that the health centre and the wider district are suffering from a serious shortage of drugs as the last supplies arrived six months ago" , said Loris De Filippi, operational coordinator for MSF Belgium in Ethiopia. "But once again, the authorities refused to let our team move from the capital city Jijiga to Fiq by road or even by plane".

As insecurity has left health structures empty of staff and medicines, there is a risk that the health situation will deteriorate further. In the month since MSF carried out its assessments, no independent humanitarian non-governmental organizations have been able to provide assistance to these areas. The region is known to be extremely precarious and subject to nutritional emergencies and famines causing extremely high mortality, as witnessed by MSF in the years 1992 and 2000. Humanitarian organizations must be allowed immediate access to the region, otherwise the medical and nutritional consequences risk becoming catastrophic.

Eyewitness Report of Ogaden Crisis Villages deserted, burned in Ethiopia's Ogaden - MSF Reuters, Sep 4, 2007

"I saw burned out villages. I remember passing a number of villages that were empty other than the elderly and sick," Eileen Skinnider, assistant coordinator for Ethiopia, told the news conference via an Internet link from Canada. "We didn't pass one commercial vehicle ... I saw women and children chased away (by soldiers) trying to collect water from wells ... I saw small groups of men living in the bush."

Ethiopia 'blocking MSF in Ogaden' In December 1985 Mengistu kicked Medecin Sans Frontiers (MSF) out of Ethiopia because they spoke up against the diversion of aid and the forced resettlement program. MSF continued to work behind rebel lines in Tigray and Eritrea to provide desperately needed medical help. In 1999 MSF was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Note - Somali region is larger than indicated in above map

ICRC deplores expulsion from Somali Regional State International Committee of the Red Cross Press Release, July 26, 2007

ICRC (Geneva) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) deplores the decision by the authorities of Ethiopia's Somali Regional State, where it has been present for over 12 years, to give it seven days' notice to leave.

In 1936, the fascist regime of Mussolini refused any cooperation with the Red Cross and bombed Red Cross hospitals and ambulances in Ethiopia. Mengistu also attacked civilians while the Red Cross was distributing relief. According to a Human Rights Watch Report (1990): "Wukro was held by the [Mengistu] government until March 1988, and was a center for relief distributions by the Ethiopian Red Cross. After the TPLF captured the town, the Ethiopian Red Cross distributions continued according to the schedule already agreed with the government. On April 8, the distribution went ahead as planned, but government bombers attacked and killed about 100 civilians who had gathered there.